Map Plan May Help Blacks Win

TALLAHASSEE -- Broward County could get its second black member of the state House under redistricting plans released on Thursday by the county`s Legislative Delegation.

The narrow band of the proposed district is 55 percent black and roughly follows Interstate 95 from Broward Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale to Hillsboro Boulevard in Deerfield Beach.

The representative from that district would likely join Rep. Bill Clark, D- Lauderdale Lakes, as only the second black ever sent to the Capitol from Broward.

``Historically the county has been drawing district lines east and west and that divides the black community,`` said Ben Lampkin, a member of the Broward County Reapportionment Task Force. ``Going north-south is a good thing. Along I-95 is where the black people live.``

The second black seat is included in a series of district maps unveiled by Rep. Ben Graber, D-Coral Springs, the delegation chairman. Graber had asked Broward House members to prepare the maps to show how they want their districts to look after reapportionment.

The plans will be submitted to the House Reapportionment Committee, which is redrawing districts statewide. Every 10 years the Legislature carves new district boundaries because of population shifts revealed in the U.S. Census.

``I`d say people in the delegation agree with 80 percent of our maps,`` Graber said. ``But there will be debate about the other 20 percent.``